Florida Softball’s Black Friday: Three Starters Dismissed Before 2-1 NCAA …

The easy thing to write about from Florida softball’s eventful Friday is the thing that made history. Florida fell 2-1 to Florida Gulf Coast in their first game of the Gainesville Regional of the 2012 NCAA Tournament, starting off their attempt to make a fifth straight Women’s College World Series with a loss to a program that had never before appeared in an NCAA Tournament.

The Gators, the No. 5 national seed heading into the 2012 NCAA Tournament, never led against the Eagles, thanks to Kirsten Bembnowski’s second-inning homer off Hannah Rogers. Florida got its in the third inning on Lauren Haeger’s RBI single, but would not score again on FGCU starter Shelby Morgan, and Emily Lanier’s solo shot off Rogers (seven innings, six hits, two earned runs, two walks, nine strikeouts) in the sixth inning proved to be the difference.

Florida falls to the losers’ bracket of the Gainesville Regional, and will face UCF — a team that shut out the Gators in their only meeting of the season — on Saturday in an elimination game. The bright side of Friday’s result on the field, for Florida, might just be that they will always be fondly remembered by Florida Gulf Coast: the win was the first for the Eagles by any team in any Division I NCAA Tournament, and this is FGCU’s first year as a Division I program.

But all of that seems almost like subplot, given that sophomores Kasey Fagan and Cheyenne Coyle and freshman Sami Fagan were suspended and departed from the team mere hours before the 2012 NCAA Tournament, reportedly after an altercation, and will reportedly transfer from Florida.

UF announced on Friday afternoon that the Fagans and Coyle would not play against the Eagles; coach Tim Walton told reporters after the game that all three players were off the team for the rest of the season.

Walton declined to give specifics about why the players are no longer on the team, saying only that he is handling the situation internally and that the players “are no longer with us.”

When asked if that was permanently, he said:

“As you go through the end of the season you’ve got to address everything where you’re at, so as of right now they are off the team for the rest of the season.”

Kevin Fagan, father of Kasey and Sami and their former softball coach, told The Gainesville Sun that “an altercation on the team” is to blame, and that Walton made the decision to cut those three players loose.

“The team sort of divided and Walton felt like it was in his best interest to get rid of those three,” he said.

…

“I’ve scheduled an appointment with the athletic director, but yes, they’re done there,” he said. “They won’t play there anymore.”

Saturday morning, Sami Fagan took to her Facebook page to pass along her own statement:

The three of us have not been released from the team because of racism or bullying. There are a lot of rumors circulating that are false. Kasey and Cheyenne were both Michelle’s roommate. All three of us are good friends with her, and will remain close to her. It is sad that people have created such false accusations.

Fagan is referring to Michelle Moultrie, UF’s only senior, who is black. Update, 12:05 a.m. Sunday: Moultrie just tweeted her own comments about the still-mysterious altercation:

Kasey, Sami, and Cheyenne are really good friends of mine. This is hard on everyone. Please don’t spread crazy rumors. They’re not true.

In a comment on that status, Fagan wrote “We will not be returning to the University of Florida. Thank you all for your support.” If you want an indication that the three players — who reportedly took in the Fagans’ alma mater, Dunnellon High, losing to Lake City Columbia High on Friday night, a game that featured Florida football target Laremy Tunsil — will transfer that goes beyond the father of two of them saying as much, getting it from one of the players is probably pretty good.

If race played a role in the altercation that is reportedly at the root of this suspension, it would be just another example of the Florida softball team clumsily handling the subject. In October, Rogers tweeted pictures of herself and other Florida softball players dressed up as Florida football players, complete with blackface, for a costume party.

In the comments of that post, “softballchick” added that Rogers and Kelsey Horton dressed up as “INDIA ladies” for a “COWBOY/INDIAN party.” That party may, perhaps, be the root of these pictures of Sami Fagan and Coyle, both used as the players’ Twitter backgrounds for their now-defunct accounts.

This photo, of Fagan, was uploaded as a file named “indy.jpg.”

This photo is from Coyle. All three players deleted their Twitter accounts over the course of the past 48 hours, and Florida pitcher Lauren Haeger tweeted that she is following suit and deleting her account; Haeger also tweeted out what could be thoughts in the wake of the altercation on Thursday.

Something has felt wrong to me about this Florida softball team since Rogers tweeted those photos. The team banded together that night on Twitter to attack a person who used a vulgar term in a reply to Rogers in re: her photos; they did the same thing recently to attack the many vocal critics of Florida baseball’s Cody Dent (the boyfriend of softball player Ensley Gammel), charging that fans should be unfailingly supportive of their team, not critical. They were wrong about that, I think, because fans have every right to boo their own players, much less accurately assess players like the weak-hitting Dent as deficient, because being a fan is not an act limited only to cheering.

I consider myself proof of that: My own fanhood of Florida softball has been a tempered one since the photos, with my pride in them as fellow Gators mitigated by off-putting tweets about how (and I’m paraphrasing, as I failed to save those tweets) fans would not have to go to church on Sundays because of many players’ use of Christian worship songs as at-bat music, my discovery of Fagan and Coyle’s “Indian” getups (which are every bit as racially tone-deaf as the use of blackface), and, recently, being told that an underage softball player was seen drinking at a Gainesville bar.

Right or wrong, the impression I got of the Florida softball team, as an attentive and interested observer, was of a team with a small-minded cadre of players at its core — a clique that did not take kindly to criticism or adversity, and that did more scowling than smiling. (For what it’s worth, I thought that both last year’s cover of Avril Lavigne’s “What the Hell” and this year’s cover of “Call Me Maybe” were significantly less fun than the source songs, partly due to what seemed like a conscious effort to appear to be having fun.)

We don’t know all of the story of the last two days yet, and we might not know it, if Walton chooses not to divulge his reasons for reportedly dismissing the Fagans and Coyle and the Fagans and Coyle decide to keep mum about their part in it. I know very little beyond what I’ve written and reported here. But I know enough about Florida sports, and this Florida softball team, to consider this season one of the most painful to endure by any Florida team over the span of my Gators fanhood.

In quotes after Friday’s loss, Walton seemed resigned to this outcome being the result of him making the best decision when faced with a hard choice.

“It’s something that I handled and handled as well as I could and as well as I’m capable of handling,” Walton said afterward. “I’d be crazy to say it didn’t affect the team.

“A team is a team and you work hard from the beginning of the season. Any kind of departure of any person on this team not in that lineup or not on this field is a distraction, no question.”

The distraction is not helpful, to be sure. But it’s also factual that the Gators are worse without three reliable starters. Without the Fagans and Coyle — Sami led the team with a .371 batting average; Coyle swatted 10 homers, was third on the team with 34 RBI, and played solid defense at shortstop; Kasey started 50 games for Florida — Florida’s hopes of heading to Oklahoma City are on life support, even with the return of power hitter Brittany Schutte (.457 average, three homers, and 23 RBI in 18 games in 2012) to the lineup, and their chances of playing after this weekend are almost as slim, with three teams that have beaten the Gators this year playing a team significantly reduced from its peak potential.

The Gators play what could be their last game of the season this afternoon at 3:30 against UCF. While I have never and hopefully will never root against any Gators, I can’t say I’ll be particularly upset if this lost season meets an abrupt end.

Protesters call for end to oil pipelines in Canada, U.S. – Chicago Sun

BY TINA SFONDELES  AND RUMMANA HUSSAIN
Staff Reporters

May 17, 2012 12:22PM

• Reprints

Protesters lay in the street as others chant “No blood for oil” outside the Canadian consulate in Chicago on Thursday, May 17, 2012. | Tina Sfondeles~Sun-Times

The NATO Summit: Latest news, background, protests and events

Map: NATO Summit road closures and parking restrictions

Weekend Round-Up: Morrissey, Butterfly Effect, Brewers Festival

By Madeline Ziecker

Morrissey and Kristine Young. Courtesy photo.

In this issue:

Featured Shows Events

Morrissey in Concert Friday, May 18 at 7:30 p.m. at the MACC. 

This is a big one.

Morrissey, one of the most influential alternative rock musicians of the past three decades and former lead singer of  The Smiths, plays his first Hawaii show in 20 years for Maui fans on Friday night.

So many popular bands have clearly followed in Morrissey’s tracks by incorporating some of his distinctive style into their music, including Radiohead, The Killers, Fun., Suede, Blur, Bloc Party, Jeff Buckley and countless others.

Morrissey’s music is as unique, captivating, and influential as the music of British icons David Bowie and Freddy Mercury. Once you’ve heard his pretty wails, dark lyrics, and strong instrumental undertones, it’s hard to get them out of your head.

The MACC asked Maui Now to remind tonight’s concert-goers that Morrissey requests “no meat of any kind” to be consumed in the facility. The pre-show dinner will be provided by Stella Blues Cafe with an all-vegetarian menu.

Musician Kristeen Young, who has performed with Morrissey in previous years, opens the show at 7:30 p.m.

Tickets are still on sale for $49.50, $59.50, and $69.50 by calling the MACC Box Office at 242-SHOW or online at MauiArts.org.

The Butterfly Effect Surf Event, Fashion Show, and After-party Saturday, May 19 at 10 a.m. at several locations.

A shot from the 2011 Butterfly Effect event. Photo courtesy of Batel Shimi.

The Butterfly Effect is a water movement that brings women together for an annual 3-mile, non-competitive downwinder from Baldwin Beach Park to Kanaha Beach Park, presented by Surfrider Foundation Maui Chapter.

The event day  begins with check-in and $1 coffee at Paia Bay Coffee Co. from 8-9 a.m., followed by a quick Baldwin Beach Park community clean-up from 9-1o a.m. before the paddle starts at 11 a.m.

Post-paddle events include a second beach clean-up from 1-2 p.m at Kanaha Beach Park, The Butterfly Effect fashion show at Thee Salon at 6 p.m., and an after-party at Charley’s with DJ Boomshot. The cover charge for the after-party is $13 for general admission and $5 for participants in The Butterfly Effect.

The entry fee for the paddle is a $35 donation to Surfrider Foundation and includes lunch, event-wear (lycra), and a goody bag. For more information, visit The Butterfly Effect’s event page on Facebook.

Courtesy image.

Maui Brewers Festival Saturday, May 19 from 3-7 p.m. at the MACC. 

Hints of the summer season have started to emerge, like Maui’s all-day beer-drinking fest – the Fourth Annual Maui Brewers Festival.

32 craft breweries from Hawai’i and beyond will sample their best lager, port, and stout beer.

The 21-and-over event includes food from 20 popular Maui restaurants and live music from GoMega, The Easy, Alika Nako’oka Band, and a special unannounced guest.

The festival also serves as fundraiser for the MACC, with proceeds benefiting arts and cultural programs for students, seniors, an the Maui community.

Paid general admission includes free prizes, eight 40z beer samples in a keep-sake glass, unlimited food, and parking . The Happy Hour Package includes early admission at 2 p.m., a chance to speak with brewmasters, reserved parking, all the perks of general admission, and a logo gift.

General admission is $45 in advance, $55 on the event day. The Happy Hour Package os $75 in advance, $85 on the event day. To purchase admission tickets, call the MACC Box Office at 242-SHOW or go online at MauiArts.org.

Paia Baywatch Party with The Neverminds Friday, May 18 at 10 p.m. at Charley’s Restarurant Saloon in Paia. Cover charge is $10. 

Courtesy Image.

Naish presents a dance party surrounding the recent Mai Tai 2012 kite surf camp. The North Shore’s popular cover band The Neverminds (get it? like the Nirvana album) will jam out to the theme of the party – “Paia Baywatch,” based off of the popular Baywatch TV series starring Pamela Anderson.

Technically it’s not a costume party, but with some of the Pamela-esque water-sporting bombshells we have promenading on that side of the island, you may get that impression.

Freeradicals Projekt Summer Tour Launch Friday, May 18 at 10 p.m. at Casanova in Makawao. 

Maui band Freeradicals Projekt is spreading their wings and taking to the California coast for their summer Soulfire Radio Tour tonight. What better place to kick it off than upcountry Maui?

Courtesy image.

Come and catch them one last time before they take the biggest adventure of their musical career together.

Maui Underground Dance Party Saturday, May 19 at 9:30 p.m. at Three’s Bar Grill in Kihei.

Three’s hosts a dance party with electric didgeridoo jams and “funkadelic goodness,” Maui underground style. Michael Ryals is the night’s visual artist.

Solo Sessions: Justin Nozuka Saturday, May 19 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets bought in advance are $25 standard and $35 VIP. Tickets bought on the show day are $30 standard and $35 VIP.

Justin Nozuka. Courtesy photo.

US-born, Canadian-raised singer/songwriter Justin Nozuka makes his first Maui appearance in the MACC’s Solo Sessions concert series.

Nozuka plays acoustic folk with a Jawaiian twist. At 22 years old he has released two albums and is on the radar as a rising star of his genre.

 To purchase tickets, call the MACC Box Office at 242-SHOW or go online at MauiArts.org.

Fiji Common Kings Live Saturday, May 19 at 9 p.m. at Ocean’s Bar Grill. Tickets are $20 pre-sale and $25 at the door.

Hawaii-based artists Fiji and Common Kings appear for a concert at Oceans on Saturday. Attendees can enjoy some of Ocean’s drink specials during the show. 

Community Events

Makawao 3rd Friday. Photo by Madeline Ziecker.

Makawao Third Friday May Town Party Friday, May 18 from 6-9 p.m. on upper Baldwin Avenue in Makawao Town.

This month’s Makawao Third Friday Town Party features an “Interactive Art Hunt” at designated galleries and locations throughout town. Featured artists showcase their work and give live demonstrations of their art. Guests are encouraged to “hunt” for each artist, check in at each location they visit, and complete at least 80% of the full artist list to be eligible for prizes

Other entertainment highlights include music and dance performances in the Casanova parking lot with DJ Sweet Beets spinning her sounds, starting at 8 p.m. Makawao’s Center Stage hosts Benny Uyetake Friends.

Though the night focuses on art, there are also plenty of other activities including dining, shopping and more at Makawao businesses and local vendor booths on Baldwin Ave.

For more details, visit Makawao Friday Town Party’s Facebook event page.

Summer Camp Fair Saturday, May 19 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Queen Ka’ahumanu Center in Kahului.

Parents have a chance to find out information on keiki summer camps and programs offered by over 3o Maui organizations such as Pacific Whale Foundation, Seabury Hall, Hui No’eau Visual Arts Center, Bounty Music, Maui Music Conservatory, Basketball Maui, College for Kids/College Bound, Maui Humane Society, and many more.

Related Stories:

• Morrissey To Play Maui Concert
• Two Big Maui Paddle Events Approach
• Weekend Round-Up: Steve-O, J Boog, Paula Fuga
• Sir, may I have another: Elton John ticket sales set record
• “Bottoms Up” Maui – Annual Brewers Festival Coming Soon

Ohio State Self-Reports 46 Violations, But Really, Who Gives A Shit?

The Cleveland Plain Dealer obtained a list of 46 secondary violations committed by Ohio State over the past 12 months, which they self-reported to the NCAA. They’ve posted all the documents, but here is a choice sampling:

• Urban Meyer met with two high school coaches before a state championship game. While leaving the field, he told a player “good luck.” That player turned out to be an OSU recruit.

• Assistant coach Mike Vrabel used chewing tobacco on the sidelines.

• The parents of a football recruit texted an assistant coach to ask which gate to enter Ohio Stadium for a scrimmage. He texted them back with the answer.

• Greg Paulus, video coordinator for the basketball team, was seen talking with players while pointing to the court. Since he’s not technically on the coaching staff, he’s not allowed to “coach” anyone in this manner.

• On a recruiting visit, a diving prospect’s student host bought him an $8 Halloween costume for a party.

• A lacrosse recruit visiting campus for an instructional camp had his personal stick stolen. The OSU staff gave him another one as a replacement.

• A lawyer and booster for the athletics department threw a birthday party for his wife, and invited his close friends who happened to have a kid playing sports at OSU.

• A women’s soccer coach tried to leave a voicemail for an academic counselor named Lindsay. He later realized he had dialed the wrong “Lindsay” in his phone, and left the message for a recruit.

• Five graduating seniors on the women’s hockey team received framed jerseys and rings. The value of these gifts exceeded the allowed amount, by $4.

• A random man showed up at the tennis facility. He told a coach his daughter was a tennis recruit. The coach told him she couldn’t talk to him, and he left.

The proper reaction to this is “Wow, that’s a whole lot of nothing.” Then, take your hat off to university compliance officers, because holy shit they have the worst job in the world. Doing nothing but tracking down and meticulously documenting every bit of seemingly innocuous minutiae, then seeing if it’s expressly allowed in the NCAA’s 426-page manual. God bless you, because I would shoot myself after two days.

Sometimes I think the NCAA is the country’s greatest job creation program. Thousands of jobs as compliance officers and enforcement staff exist for no real reason, and it’s all paid for by the free labor of revenue-sport athletes.

Ohio State’s Urban Meyer, AD Gene Smith admit ‘secondary’ NCAA violations; school reports 46 violations in all sports since last June [Plain Dealer]

Asheville celebrates Beer Week with tasting, quirky events and two festivals – Asheville Citizen

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Ongoing Thursday through June 3:

• Brews Cruise, the local beer tour service, will offer tours each day of Beer Week.

• The Lobster Trap restaurant is serving a new cask every day during Asheville Beer Week.

• Highland Brewing is hosting Scotty’s Scavenger Hunt during Beer Week, with contestants searching for specially labeled beers.

• Thursday: Asheville Beer Masters final competition, 6:30-9 p.m., Asheville Brewing, 77 Coxe Ave; Bavarian Music Night with an oom-pah band, 7-10 p.m., Lexington Avenue Brewery, 39 N. Lexington Ave.; Chatoe Rogue beers from Rogue Brewing, served 5-10 p.m. at Thirsty Monk, 92 Patton Ave; French Broad Brewing beer dinner, details to be announced.

• May 25: Beer 101 open class, 4-6 p.m., Barley’s Taproom, 42 Biltmore Ave. French Broad Brewing cask night at the brewery, 5-9 p.m., 101 Fairview Road; hop infused Shiva IPA served 5:30-10 p.m., Asheville Brewing, 77 Coxe Ave.; Appalachian Trail fundraiser, 6-9 p.m. at Nantahala Brewing, Bryson City, $5.

• May 26: West Asheville Can Crawl costume party, 6-10 p.m. Westville Pub, 777 Haywood Road; Mountain Sports Beer Jam, 4-8 p.m., Carrrier Park; Iron Brewer Competition, 1-6 p.m., Fifth Season Garden Co., $35 to enter, free to watch.

• May 27: LaZoom Beer Run, tour of of breweries, 1-3 p.m., $25 per person; Beer Week rootball championship, 4-10 p.m., Root Bar, 1410 Tunnel Road; Beer Week Trivia Night, 8-10 p.m., Lexington Avenue Brewery, free; Hash House Harriers beer run from Asheville Brewing to Wedge Brewing, 2-6 p.m., no charge; to run.

• May 28: Asheville Brewing’s Rocket Girl model search, 8-11 p.m., Asheville Music Hall, 31 Patton Ave. $5.

• May 29: Glass Trade Party, bring your old pint glasses and growlers to trade, 5-8 p.m., Bar of Soap, 333 Merrimon Ave.; Stone Brewing beer tasting, 5-7 p.m., Bruisin’ Ales, 66 Broadway St., ticketed event; Flight Night at The Market Place, Pisgah Brewing beer and food pairing, 6-10 p.m., $16; Southern Tier beers on tap all day at Mellow Mushroom, 50 Broadway St.; tacos and beer all day, White Duck Taco, 1 Roberts St.; progressive dinner at Curate by the Thirsty Monk, 6:30-10 p.m., ticketed event.

A Father’s Fight Against Underage Drinking

During Jeff Levy’s last conversation with his son, he asked Jon, a sophomore at Radford University, if he would ever get in a car with a drunk driver. 

“I’ll always remember the last words that my son said to me…’Trust me, Dad, I know better.’ Those were the last words  I remember my son saying on Wednesday night,” said Levy. “And I really did trust him, and he really did know better. Sober.”

By Friday night, Jon was dead. He had gone to a Halloween party and then gotten into a car with a drunk driver, and one other student in the back seat. 

“They were last seen going up over a hill between between Radford and Virginia Tech,” Levy said of that night in October 1997. “And the witnesses said they were going somewhere between 85 and 100 miles an hour and they were over the double yellow line. They went over the hill. Hit head-on another car.”

Since that day, Levy has made it his mission to spread the word about college drinking. A resident of the Mount Vernon area, Levy is the commissioner of the Fairfax County Oversight Committee on Drinking and Driving. He also does presentations about four times a month with the Unified Prevention Coalition of Fairfax County on the “Perils of the College Drinking Culture.” At a Tuesday meeting of the Citizens Advisory Committee at the Sully District Government Center, he shared his story. 

“There wasn’t enough left of my son or the driver to make an identification,” Levy said. “So they didn’t notify me until about 10 o’clock the next morning. They had to take tatters of his Halloween costume back to where they rented the costumes to determine who it was.”

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In high school, no one would have guessed that Jon’s life would become a cautionary tale. He was a popular student who played football, baseball and basketball. 

“He was a kid that I was very proud of. I’ll be the first one to tell you that there were times in high school, where he came home, he’d obviously had a couple beers, or he’d been drinking,” Levy said.

“And his mom and I, we went nuts and so forth. We yelled and screamed ‘you’re grounded,’ we took the keys away. But the message was clear, that it was kind of expected and accepted behavior, that all the kids were doing it. And so we went through the motions.”

When Jon got to college, things got out of control. He had “a couple incidents that we found out later,” Levy said. At the end of the year, Jon drove through a fence and got a DUI. 

“We finally learned our lesson and put our foot down and said that’s it, no more. You can’t do this anymore. There are consequences to your actions. We brought him home and told him, you’re not going back to school until you’ve really cleaned up your act,” Levy said. “Until you’ve tested free from drugs and alcohol…and you know why you’re going to school.”

That summer, Jon took two jobs, paid off all the damages related to the accident and the DUI. He told Levy that he wanted to go into business with him. At the end of August, he tested clean.

“We were convinced that he had learned his lesson,” Levy said. 

Combating the ‘College Drinking Culture’

What he and his wife didn’t appreciate, Levy said, was the binge drinking culture rampant on many campuses across the country. Every year, 1,825 college students between the ages of 18 and 24 die from alcohol-related, unintentional injuries, according to the National Institute for Alcohol and Abuse and Alcoholism. Another 599,000 students between 18 and 24 are unintentionally injured while under the influence of alcohol. 

Levy said that parents are the key to preventing underage drinking. He cited research that 70 percent of students say their parents are the most influential person in their life. He urged parents to tell their children that any form of drinking is unacceptable for anyone under age 21. The science, he said, shows that alcohol is especially dangerous for minors because their brains are not finished developing. 

What’s more, binge drinking has grown more commonplace over the years. The driver of the car that Jon Levy died in had the equivalent of over 20 martinis in his body—but had only been drinking for 50 minutes. That type of heavy drinking is not an anamoly on college campuses.

The decision made that October night in 1997 had a ripple effect. Levy said that Jon’s sister was close to her brother and “kind of went to her room after my son’s death and didn’t come out for two years.” One of Jon’s best friends, depressed by the death, committed suicide just weeks after the crash. Jon’s girlfriend blamed herself for allowing him to get in the car, and three years later, had an emotional breakdown.

Another student, who had ridden in the back seat of the car, was in such bad condition at the scene that medical personnel initially thought he was dead and placed him in a body bag. He spent six weeks in a coma, had 100 broken bones, internal injuries, lost an eye and part of his foot and suffered severe brain damage. 

The driver of the other car died that night. 

“She left behind five older kids. She had a class that day and went to the mall to buy a gift for her daughter who was having a baby shower that night. But she never made it,” Levy said. “Also ironically, she’d never had a drink in her life. She was a teetotaler, religious. She was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

Levy said that he keeps telling his son’s story because he wants parents and teens to understand what they may be up against. He doesn’t want any other students to get sucked into the drinking scene. 

“It was a Halloween party,” Levy said. “‘We’re going to have fun.’ And look at the story we’re left to tell.”

Interested in this story? Read these related articles:

After Son’s Death, Mom Speaks Out About Teen Acohol Abuse

Wild Night Leads to Tragic Consequences

Drug Ring Takes Toll, But Neighbors Unite

Alicia’s Compass: Law Inspired by Centreville Teen’s Struggle With Addiction

A serious costume party in Cape Coral

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Sal Cossentino and his wife, Marie, wore T-shirts today emblazoned with photos of their parents.

“All four of them had different types of cancer,” said Cossentino, 53, of North Fort Myers, who walked in the Cape Coral Relay For Life at Mariner High School.

Cossentino’s shirt read “Forever Loved,” and paid tribute to his father, Frank, who died of colon cancer in 2005, along with his mother, Rose, who died in 2008 from carcinoma of the palate.

“It’s important to come out and support this because one day you might get that phone call,” Cossentino said.

About 45 teams participated in the 18-hour American Cancer Society event, raising nearly $90,000 by this afternoon. The group hopes to bring in $170,000 — $13,000 more than last year — before fundraising ends in August, event chairwoman Donna Germain said.

“Each relay has a different flavor … but the unifying factor is that we’re all working toward a common goal,” said ACS board member Sybil Edgar, a 17-year breast cancer survivor.

Participants shrug-ged off rain as they walked laps dressed in “Alice in Wonderland” costumes and “Toy Story” T-shirts during the Disney-themed event.

Mike Curley, 63, of south Fort Myers, carried a pink flamingo and said it felt good to support fellow survivors and caregivers after radiation and removal of his prostate four years ago.

Edgar recognized faces she’s seen since the first Cape relay helped raise $113,000 in 2002.

“I see people who are still fighting,” she said. “It’s like when you have a child and you watch them grow.”

Fall events 2012

This list is not all-inclusive

Sept. 1-2
Oak Brook
Civil War Encampment: 10th Illinois Regiment
Graue Mill
10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Regiment and their families depict life in a Union military camp in 1863 with authentic clothing, weapons and tools. Demonstrations include black powder firing and drills, cooking and crafts. Some fees. grauemill.org

Sept. 7-8
Itasca
Oktoberfest
Times TBD
Kick off the fall season with a touch of German culture. This festival features authentic German food, drink and entertainment. Some fees. itasca.com

Sept. 8
Bloomingdale
Septemberfest
Begins at 11 a.m.
In its 39th year the festival will start with a parade kicking off at DuJardin School at 11 a.m. traveling west on Schick Road and into Old Town — the site of the fest. Enjoy food and vendor booths as well as live musical entertainment and a car and motorcycle show. Some fees. villageofbloomingdale.org

Sept. 8-9
Wheaton
Revolutionary War Reenactment
Cantigny Park
10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Cantigny and the North West Territory Alliance will help take you back to the 18th century with this reenactment and encampment. Visitors will see what life was like in camps and in battle. Fees. cantigny.org

Sept. 9
Oak Brook
Cornfest
Graue Mill
11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Lots of seasonal food, including roasted corn on the cob, pies and taffy apples are offered. Entertainment includes games, races and a children’s fishing tournament. Kids can get creative with hammer, nails and paint at the giant woodpile. Fees. grauemill.org

TBD
Lisle
Depot Days
Held at the Museums of Station Park, visitors can tour the historic buildings for a glimpse of history, take a hayride or browse the craft fair. Seasonal favorites include baked apple pie and warm cornbread. The event also includes a variety of demonstrations such as basket weaving. Some fees. lisleparkdistrict.org

Oct. 5 – 6
Naperville
Oktoberfest
Naper Settlement
4-10 p.m. Oct. 5, 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Oct. 6.
Hosted by Naper Settlement Museum this annual event features live music and authentic German cuisine. Located on Aurora Avenue just north of Martin Mitchell Mansion. Fees. napersettlement.org

Oct. 13
Wheaton
Fall Festival
Cantigny Park
10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Enjoy fun and activities for the season such as pumpkin decorating and scarecrow making. Go on a hayride or visit Berties Coffee Café for a cup of hot cider or chocolate. There are lots of children’s activities including a petting zoo. Fees. cantigny.org

Oct. 14
Lombard
Downtown Lombard Spooktacular!
Times TBD
This family festival draws visitors to downtown Lombard between Park Avenue and St. Charles Road. Fall fun includes bands, crafts, food and seasonal favorites such as pumpkins and scarecrow contests. Some fees. lombardtowncentre.org

Oct. 19-20
Naperville
All Hallows Eve: A Night of Fear
Naper Settlement
6:30 to 10 p.m.
On the two darkest nights of the year this museum turns into a haunting grounds. In addition to haunting, creatures from some of the scariest stories in literature are brought to life. The annual event gives such a chill it is not recommended for children 8 and younger. Fees. napersettlement.org

Oct. 27
Westmont
Trick or Treat Trail
Times TBD
Get your costume ready and head downtown for a special trick or treat event. Children can visit area businesses for a safe trick or treat experience and to receive special surprises. Free. Westmontevents.com

Oct. 28
Downers Grove
Safe Trick or Treating/Halloween Costume Parade
Times TBD
Children can get dressed up in their costumes and parade through downtown Main Street. Visits to specified businesses will provide special treats in a safe environment. Free. events.downers.us

Nov. 16-18
Oak Brook
Christmas at the Mill
Graue Mill
Times TBD
This fine artisan boutique offers a unique holiday shopping opportunity. Local artisans will sell handcrafted Christmas decorations, jewelry, stained glass, pottery and hand woven and knitted items. Strolling carolers and decorated trees add to the festive spirit. Santa will greet guests on Saturday and Sunday afternoon. Some fees. grauemill.org

Nov. 23
Downers Grove
Tree Lighting Ceremony
Join friends and dignitaries from around the village for the official lighting of the Christmas tree at the Main Street Train Station. More than 1,000 ornaments handmade by the children in the community typically decorate the tree. Participants can join in the entertainment of holiday songs and refreshments. Free. events.downers.us

Nov. 23
Westmont
Holly Days
Holly days is a month-long celebration beginning with the Holly Days Craft Fair and Tree Lighting. Officially opening the fun is the Holly Days Festival and Frosty Friends Parade. Activities during the celebrations include visits with Santa in his workshop and ice skating. Some fees. westmontevents.com

Nov. 24
Roselle
Celebrate the Season
Times TBD
Get ready for the holidays with stories, songs and more. Festivities begin at the library, 40 S. Park St. with entertainment and Santa arrives to visit with the children. A ceremony is held to officially light the tree. Free. roselle.il.us

Trashy Means Just One Thing When Your’re 5

It was Saturday night and I was prepping for a Moms Night Out. This was to be no ordinary moms night out where you don your latest new fashion – or the clothes that are clean and unstained and haven’t been worn in the past day – in my case. Some of us ladies were headed out to enjoy a subscription party purchased at a preschool auction and the theme was White Trash Bunco.

Sounds fun, right? I was thrilled to play Bunco for the first time. It was as much a right of passage for me as a mother as my first Tupperware party was for me as a new bride. And on the eve of Mother’s Day, I couldn’t think of anything more stereotypical – cocktails and Bunco with a random group of moms.

But the White Trash aspect was a bit of hurdle for me. I’m not a huge costume girl. I try to envision and execute, but with three kids, time always weighs me down and I find myself zipping around at the last minute, working with limited possibilities.

Oddly with this theme, I knew I would have some things lying around the house that could be put to good use.

It was about 4 p.m. and Bunco was to commence at 6:30 p.m. My lack of preparedness was beginning to set in. I knew I had to begin to throw something together to prevent being the worst dressed at a White Trash Party, which would clearly be an all-time low. 

I had theorized that I would wear a leopard bra with a see-through white T-shirt, camouflaged pants and go barefoot. Hair would be tousled up top with a tacky pink scrunchy I borrowed from my daughter.  It helped that I had an obnoxious sunburn from my son’s baseball game earlier that day – signifying utter self-disrespect. Tattoos abound, a homemade Chevy emblem on my shoulder and some uneven liquid eyeliner and dark lip-liner with a lighter, iridescent lip-gloss. It was hideous and perfect at the same time.

Then I went searching to accessorize. My friend had purchased Slim Jims and 24 oz. Pabst Blue Ribbons, so I only needed some tacky bracelets and some odd necklaces. I knew just where to go.

Looking like I just hitchhiked my way from my trailer park to a KISS concert, I barreled into Ashley’s pink palace in search of some bejeweled treasures. But I was frozen in my tracks by the look my daughter gave me upon my entrance.

There was pure silence for nearly a minute with my 5-year-old tacitly looking me up and down in complete disgust. And then it registered.

“Oh, Mommy, what happened to you?” Ashley asked in a concerned voice. Her eyes preoccupied by the skull and crossbones tattoo plastered in between my sunburn and leopard bra strap.

“Where are you going? Why do you look like that?”

I was speechless. How do I answer this?

“Mommy’s going to a costume party,” I said. “It’s only moms and it’s themed,” I told her. My husband just laughed, waiting just as anxiously for my response as my daughter.

How do I explain trashy girls to my 5-year-old? There have been plenty of times that this theme has popped up in my private mind when I have watched the latest outfit my daughter has thrown together. A sequined tutu with a tiny crop top, Barbie high heels, 16 necklaces and stringy hair clipped together with her Cinderella hairpiece… But I choose my words wisely and instead offer her another cute outfit to wear when accompanying her brothers and me to the park. After all, she might be cold, I protest.

But there I was, standing in front of my daughter in all my glory and it is at this point where I truly feel that I have stepped into character. I am even feeling trashy on the inside as I attempt to usher my innocent daughter from the ills of style and class.

“It’s just a silly party where you wear trashy clothes and make-up,” I finally say, skimming over my “trashy” adjective.

And then I realize that we have two meanings for the word trashy.

“Well, I don’t understand why you didn’t just dress up as a Litterbug?” she said.

I guess I might have more luck getting my point across when she’s 16 and attempting to leave the house in a new and hip mini-mini-skirt. I fear we may have two meanings for the same adjective again in our lives.

Flying the freak flag

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Is Johnny Depp’s wacko routine becoming too predictable?

After a recent screening of Dark Shadows – the latest collaboration between director Tim Burton and actor Johnny Depp, and yet another cinematic opportunity for Depp to wear a whole lot of white face make-up – I had a fleeting thought: Maybe Johnny Depp should stop being weird.

For more than two decades, John Christopher Depp has approached his career using his own extremely unique artistic compass. Every once in a while, he plays a character who falls into the category of “normal”, at least relatively speaking, like a J.M. Barrie in Finding Neverland. But more often than not, especially when he works with Burton, Depp’s choices skew toward the bizarre: melancholy creatures who never need reach for a pair of shears (Edward Scissorhands), cross-dressing B-movie directors (Ed Wood) and creepy candy factory operators with Anna Wintour haircuts (Willy Wonka in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory).

For years, he was able to fly his freak flag on the semi-fringes of Hollywood. But after he demonstrated that playing a pirate as if he were a drunken member of the Rolling Stones was actually good for business, Depp earned the freedom to tackle strange parts in increasingly mainstream movies. Over the past nine years, he has generated more revenue for doing so than he had in his entire career before that.

But is Depp’s wacko routine becoming too predictable? When we see photos from the set of the upcoming Lone Ranger, in which Depp, as Tonto, wears face paint and a dead crow on his head, do we think, “Ah, another exciting creative leap forward for Johnny Depp”? Or do we think, “Oh, great. There he is in another role that’s going to inspire a bunch of annoying Halloween costumes”?

After seeing Dark Shadows, the least compelling Depp/Burton collaboration so far, I was leaning toward annoying Halloween costume. Watching Depp use his vampire fangs to chew scenery as Barnabas Collins, it felt like the Depp weirdness well might have finally been tapped dry.

But then, I saw him last week on the chat showJimmy Kimmel Live – where the Academy Award nominee was dressed, as usual, like a slightly unkempt but undeniably handsome hipster – and heard him admit that he rarely sees his own movies. And I was reminded that all this guy cares about, at age 48, is the satisfaction he derives from each gig. How he comes across on-screen? That’s not a factor. There’s something admirable in that, even if it also means that we face the prospect of a fifth Pirates of the Caribbean movie because, apparently, Depp didn’t see how boring the last three were.

Most of us think that we must eventually grow up, get serious and stop playing dress-up games in which we wind up vaguely resembling Robert Smith from The Cure. Depp has never subscribed to that notion. He has proven that it is possible to be your own, weirdest self without compromising and, even better, that a bunch of buttoned-up movie studio suits will eventually pay a tonne of money to allow that weirdness to continue. He is the rare individual whom media moguls, Disney World visitors and Occupy Wall Streeters simultaneously view as one of their own.

So although I didn’t like Dark Shadows as much as I wanted to and remain conflicted about this whole Tonto situation, I still salute this beloved oddball. In a world where too many people look down on those who differ from them and where a lot of adults lock away their tendency toward healthy lunacy, we need Johnny Depp. We need him to remind us that it’s OK to get freaky – and, that even if we fail at it, it’s OK to get freaky again.

Washington Post